Jacob had a busy weekend on Sunday attending 2 holiday parties! The first one was for a neighbor/friend who was hosting a Christmas Pajamas Brunch. The child of the hostess is a few months younger than Jacob and I noticed he had a pretty obvious runny nose. Uh oh, as Jacob is playing with and trying to touch everything new at their house, the Doctor Mom in me cringed thinking, Uh oh, I wish they had told us he had a runny nose. We only stayed for a little bit and had to go to another birthday party.
Our second was a birthday party for a coworker whose son was turning 3. I had hung out a few times with his wife and her Mom group when I was on maternity leave almost 2 years ago. I was excited to see them and see how Jacob could keep up with the rest of the kids. I also, in full disclosure, was a bit apprehensive about meeting new people and this new Mom and kid world. I had been used to my own friends and my own group and I heard stories about the competitive nature of these mom groups. I had advised myself ahead of time that I was going to be friendly and introduce Jacob and me.
Our friend had a lovely backyard with a bounce house in the backyard. I was thinking, Oh no, a bounce house is so dangerous and I’ve heard stories of broken bones, noses and many trips to the ER because of these! But, I said, I would watch Jacob like a hawk and I would try to keep my super OCD nature at bay for the sake of Jacob.
The boys were 3-5years old and it’s amazing how much a year can make a difference in play. Jacob was interested in playing in the bounce house but not necessarily with them. The boys were familiar with each other since they have been part of the Moms’ group for their entire lives. At one point, a group of the boys were trying to ‘get’ Jacob with inflatable swords and noodles (the bounce house turns into a splash pool in the summer).
My MAMA fight response went UP and I was ready to pounce on these kids. The parents seemed to watch the older kids from a distance whereas I was close by because Jacob was young. I watched for a second, thinking, Oh no, Jacob is the only one dressed up with a nice shirt/pants and a bowtie. He’s going to the youngest/’nerdiest’ kid that is going to get picked on. Part of me then wondered, am I the one who’s supposed to intervene or are the older kids’ parents supposed to intervene and remind their kids to be inclusive and welcoming and not hit people?
No other parents came around so I had to step in and said to the kids, let’s be gentle to your youngest friend. Eventually my friend came and told his boys ‘No hitting’. What a whole new world? Whose job is it to run interference when you see kids not acting their best?
We were getting ready to leave but then it was cupcake time. Oh no, I thought, he’s never going to sleep if he eats a cupcake. My husband a week ago, gave Jacob some chocolate mousse pie and it was like Jacob was on crack! But we didn’t want him to feel left out of the festivities so I figured a few bites of a cupcake (minus the frosting, of course) would be okay. Haha, boy was that a mistake! I dropped the boys off at home to meet with a girlfriend to see Thor 3 (Finally!) and Jacob wouldn’t sleep. It probably also didn’t help that Jeff had football on TV but that’s a separate topic for another day! 🙂
Monday I get a text from the hostess that a kid from the party went to their pediatrician for a fever and was found to test positive for the flu. OH NO!!!! So of course, Monday Jacob has a runny nose and Tuesday, I have a stuffy/runny nose filled with sinus tension and Jacob has super crusties. Sigh. Sick kids should NOT go to parties, am I right?
Jacob is acting his usual awesome self through me dragging him through Nordstrom (one stop shopping). I tried to get a picture with the mall Santa but I didn’t have patience to wait for Santa’s helpers and families who had no sense of hustle.
Happy Holidays, everyone!!!
Trust Me, I'm a Doctor Mom 